Popping back in to kick a hornet’s nest My novels will not be submitted for the Women’s Prize. Their origin story is that men were excluding them w/the Booker, so when FRESHWATER was longlisted, I hoped it was a sign that they gave thought to who *they* were excluding.

That visibility brought a ton of violent shit my way, they got quite some publicity from it, and decided to change...nothing. I hadn’t even thought about a replay () until my publisher reached out to ask how I wanted to proceed with VIVEK.

They’d already been in touch with the Women’s Prize, who had informed them: “The information we would require from you regards Akwaeke Emezi's sex as defined by law.”

Ew.

Forget about me—I don’t want this prize—but anyone who uses this kind of language does not fuck with trans women either, so when they say it’s for women, they mean cis women.

And yes, this does mean that them longlisting FW was transphobic.

It’s fine for me not to be eligible because I’m not a woman! But you not about to be out here on some ‘sex as defined by law’ like that’s not a weapon used against trans women.

I haven’t even been on Twitter but the ripples of the transphobic violence spearheaded by You-Know-Who are still being felt. The force of her hatred for people who are minding their business and trying not to get murdered is really something, but we can be loud too.

As a kid, if you told me that my favorite author would turn out to be a violent bigot and that my own books would be getting recommended as an alternative to hers, I would’ve laughed in your face. But here we are, Dark Lady and all. Much disappoint.

Anyway, just stating all this because the virulent transphobia in the UK literary world is annoying me. I did make an awesome post on IG the other day telling transphobes to die mad and honestly? Constant mood. 13/10 would recommend. Bye!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CF0Bi-wlMKo/?igshid=1oo62eppr6nzr